Whether you were treated for COVID-19 in a hospital or were experiencing more mild sickness at home, long-term symptoms after COVID-19 are very common. As many as 70% of all COVID-19 survivors experience long-term symptoms after COVID-19. These symptoms have been categorized as “Post-COVID Syndrome.”
Symptoms of Post-COVID Syndrome
Post-COVID Syndrome can include symptoms such as fatigue, imbalance, shortness of breath, joint pain, muscle weakness, and general deconditioning among others. These symptoms can occur for months after recovering from COVID-19. Physical therapy can help!
Physical Therapy and Treatment of Post-COVID-19 Syndrome
Our staff can work with you to create a customized plan of care that addresses your individual needs. Some treatment for certain symptoms include:
Fatigue: Symptoms of fatigue can be treated with endurance training. Endurance training can include aerobic activities such as walking on a treadmill, riding on a stationary bike, and dynamic walking exercises. Endurance training can also be done in with aquatic therapy, which could include aquatic walking exercises and deep-water stride exercises.
Balance: Balance training can include exercises that involve maintaining a difficult position for a certain amount of time, such as standing on a foam cushion for 30 seconds. Balance training can also include dynamic activities to improve the ability to maintain balance while walking. These can include walking backward, walking side to side, walking while marching, etc. These balance training activities can be completed in land or aquatic therapy.
Shortness of Breath: Physical therapy can improve shortness of breath through endurance training. Aquatic therapy is especially helpful in treating this symptoms because the hydrostatic pressure of the water maximizes the strengthening of respiratory muscles, such as the diaphragm.
Joint Pain: Physical therapy can help decrease pain through strength training exercises and exercises to increase joint mobility. Manual therapy techniques, such as joint mobilizations or soft tissue mobilizations, can be done to help decrease pain as well. Aquatic therapy can also be used to unweight the joints and decrease pain.
General Deconditioning: Deconditioning can be treated with a combination of endurance training, muscle strengthening, and balance training. Aquatic therapy may be beneficial to build strength and endurance in an environment that minimizes the impact of gravity.
In addition to treating symptoms of Post-COVID Syndrome, physical therapy can help with more individual challenges and needs. This can include having trouble with household chores, recreation activities, or return to work activities. We can customize your plan of care to address these things and get you back to normalcy.
Post-COVID Syndrome treatment can include land therapy, aquatic therapy, or a combination of both. The type of treatment depends on patient preference, presentation of symptoms, and severity of symptoms. Aquatic therapy has the added benefits of unweighting the body, minimizing the effect of gravity, and maximizing strengthening of respiratory muscles. Our aquatic facilities are entirely sanitary due to chemicals in the water killing viruses and bacteria.
Physical therapy can help decrease Post-COVID Syndrome symptoms and help you return to your previous quality of life before COVID-19. Schedule an evaluation with one of our physical therapists to get your individual assessment and custom treatment plan.
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